


adventures in babysitting

by mingowow



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Fluff, Gen, best friends seokgyu, poor minghao just wants to do school work, rated t for drunk mingyu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-03-01 10:39:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13293066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mingowow/pseuds/mingowow
Summary: Maybe the kids' play area at the library isn't meant for Minghao to do his schoolwork, but it definitely isn't intended to be a drop-off area for drunk students either.





	adventures in babysitting

**Author's Note:**

  * For [seungsols](https://archiveofourown.org/users/seungsols/gifts).



> i'm really glad this fic exchange happened and that so many people have gotten to spread their love for 97z!! i hope you enjoy this short and sweet little snippet of college life 97z.
> 
> also: i didn't tag underage drinking as in korea, mingyu is of legal drinking age.
> 
> thank you to dani for being the most wonderful and beta-ing this for me.
> 
> additional thanks to mae, thanh, liz, laina, and everyone else for their support and encouragement. svt fandom is really the best place! <3

University is pretty great, all things considered. Minghao thinks of himself as a studious learner, a passionate one too, so living his life with the expectation of just studying and absorbing new information is fantastic. That's of course how he had entered college, with those kinds of thoughts. But he didn't really factor in roommates, friends, social obligations, and the rest of the general population to his ideas. There are always outside factors that will disrupt plans or set things off course.

Studying in his dorm proves to be pointless from the beginning. Hansol is a great roommate and they get along really well, but the guy is a bit of a trainwreck. He's messy and disorganized, which has led to instances (yes, more than once) of textbooks lost under mountains of discarded clothing and extremely important flash drives somehow stuffed inside sneakers. He also has a habit of sleeping at odd hours, which wouldn't really be a problem if he didn't snore like a sixty-year-old man. Minghao has tried to drown it out with his headphones, from hip-hop to classical to heavy rock. Nothing is strong enough to completely mask the sound.

Minghao has tried cafes too. All kinds of cafes, the chain ones filled with mostly older folks and business people, but they are too noisy and there is an awful lot of traffic no matter the booth or table he manages to hijack. The artsy ones have really great ambiance but often he’s distracted by the other people there. He supposes that wasn't a bad thing, being intrigued and inspired by people watching, but it isn't ideal to overhear relationship details being spilled between friends when he’s trying to crank out a paper.

Studying outside (when it was warm) was okay for a while too, until he discovered at home that his bag had been invaded by ants. The common areas in the dorms are a no-go; too noisy and disruptive. He remembers hearing a story of someone accidentally spilling a soda on another student’s laptop.

Of course, the library should have been his first choice— and it was, once upon a time. The thing is that _everyone_ thinks about studying at the library. Getting a private enough table (or even a chair at all) is almost impossible so close to campus and he hates running into people he knows who want to talk or catch up when all he wants to do is lose himself in his computer and books.

But when options are limited, sometimes you have to take what you are given. And with deadlines staring him in straight in the eye, he gives in and tries for the library once more.

Everyone else had the same thought process, of course, so the first two floors of the building are completely booked. He wanders around the third floor and gives up halfway around the fourth before approaching a younger girl with a staff lanyard around her neck to ask about anywhere he can maybe find some room to sit.

"Look, it's Saturday morning and exams are in less than two weeks. The only part of this place not overflowing is probably the children's section."

He doesn't even know where the children's section is, but he manages to find it in the basement of all places. It's kinda awful in that saturated wall color and miniaturized everything kind of way. Naturally, there are no adult-sized tables or chairs to be found— he's about to give up and go back to his dorm when he spots a brightly decorated table hidden behind one of those half walls that forms a semi-circle playpen.

The top is littered with Legos, which he promptly sweeps into a random plastic bin and shoves aside. The space is gaudy and cluttered, with a strange scent of artificial grape lingering in the air, but it's quiet. There's literally not a soul in sight and Minghao would cry if he wasn't so anxious to finally get to work.

The table is so low to the ground that he has to hunch over a little once he sets up his laptop, but it's not bad. He stretches out his legs and gets to work, ignoring the questionable smear of something gross on the tabletop, just to the left of his set-up.

He doesn't know how much time passes, because he gets in one of those zones where he is running on pure adrenaline; he really wishes he had brought some coffee with him at this point. The only thing that shakes him from his trance is two voices approaching, one almost whisper-yelling and the other groaning in response.

It crosses his mind that maybe it's a couple looking for some private time (look, it's college and he's seen weirder things than two people going at it in a public library) or some younger kids sneaking off to pull a dumb prank. But the voices grow louder and end up right behind him on the other side of the half-wall.

"Shh! You need to actually pick up your feet."

"Seokmin, I wanna... go-- go home. Seokmin," the other male whines, literally like he's a child or maybe an animal in pain. His words are slurred a bit and Minghao hears him hiccup almost violently.

Is this guy _drunk_? At 11 AM? It isn't unheard of really but he doesn't understand why they are in the children's section at the library of all places. His curiosity gets the best of him though, craning his body around to try and steal a look and promptly smacking his knee into the edge of the low table. He curses under his breath, rubbing at it.

From his peripheral vision, he sees a head pop up over the ledge of the wall. The guy is somewhere around his age, his nose sharp and expression surprised. He's cute and Minghao hates himself for thinking so in such a moment, in such a location mostly.

"Oh, um, hi. Sorry about the ruckus," the boy laughs, his eyes turning into little crescents and his smile stretching across his face. Minghao is taken aback by it. He seems familiar, like maybe he’s seen him around campus or something, but he can’t place it.

"Uh, it's alright," he manages to get out, straightening up his posture and still rubbing at his knee. "Is your friend okay?"

"Oh. Yeah, he's fine. Just still drunk and my parents just called about visiting me today, so I can't have them seeing him like this." Minghao blinks at him.

"Home! Seokie," the drunk friend cries out. Minghao watches as the other sways a bit, presumably from his leg or lower body being tugged at.

"Mingyu, you can go home in a few hours, okay? Just nap here and then I'll come back soon and get you."

Minghao watches the exchange with mild concern but he's more entertained at this point. They sound like a parent and child, going back and forth with griping and light scolding. Eventually there's a loud thud and from the corner of the wall, Minghao spots the drunk friend's (Mingyu, was it?) head.

"Can you, um, do me a favor? Can you just make sure he doesn't leave? I'll pay you or buy you coffee, whatever you’d like. I just don't want him wandering around because he's like a stray dog when he’s like this."

"You want me to babysit him?" Minghao asks dumbly, blinking.

"Sort of? Yeah."

"I'm not a baby!" Mingyu calls out, his head disappearing from Minghao's view as he sits up. It's only a few moments before he's flat on his back again though, head lolling around like it might roll off. Seokmin, Minghao thinks that's his name, seems concerned and coddles the other briefly, checking the back of his head. He's not sure if they are just roommates or friends or something else entirely, but there's an obvious fondness between them that has him a little bit jealous.

Minghao thinks for a moment, about how he'll probably be at the library all day and how he really could go for some coffee at this rate. What was a couple of hours keeping an eye on an incapacitated drunkard?

"Okay, sure. But I expect a coffee when you come to pick him up."

"Oh god, thanks. You're a lifesaver, really." They exchange Kakao IDs and with a bit of resistance from Mingyu (he literally latches onto Seokmin's leg and begs him to take him home with him before being physically removed), he's finally able to leave.

Mingyu seems to give in, staying sprawled out on the floor while Minghao attempts to get back to his work. His concentration seems to be completely broken though, because even if the drunk isn't really doing anything, he can't stop himself from looking over at him every few moments. All he can see is the top of Mingyu's head of course, which just leads him to be more curious about the other guy's appearance. But he's quiet and maybe asleep at this point, so he doesn't want to disturb what calmness there is right now.

He manages to lose himself in his writing for a short period of time before he hears more people coming down the stairs to the basement. This time there are children among them, easily identifiable by their high-pitched screams and bubbly laughter.

Minghao isn't entirely sure what to do but panic starts to set in at the thought of someone finding him hanging out in a kids' play area alongside a random drunk guy. So crawling over on his knees, he approaches Mingyu, his face coming into better view, slightly parted lips puffing out snuffles of snores.

"Hey, you gotta wake up," he whispers, glancing over towards the voices of the children. There's at least three of them. "Mingyu. You can't pass out in the middle of the walkway like this."

Mingyu groans in his sleepy stupor, attempting to roll on his side, so much closer to Minghao that he has to scoot back. "Seokmin." He'd laugh if he wasn't so desperate to hide the stranger to avoid any weird looks or questions.

"Seokmin's not here right now. Come on, you can lay over here, there's a pillow." The coaxing and bribery help, Mingyu slowly propping himself up on his elbows. Minghao gets a better look at him this way and despite his disheveled hair, he's quite handsome, if not a bit cute considering the dopey and aloof expression on his face.

With Minghao’s aid, he crawls into the actual play area, collapsing face first on top of a giant stuffed elephant. The toy lets out a drawn-out squeak beneath the weight of Mingyu’s body. Minghao takes the time to make sure the other isn’t suffocating on the baby blue fur of the animal before settling back at his computer.

When Minghao looks at his Word document, he cringes internally. He’s only got about two pages finished and the time he’s wasted has been far too much. But with Mingyu seemingly content and hidden from open view, he gets back to work.

It’s short-lived, naturally, because that seems to be the course the day is taking. Mingyu starts mumbling to himself and he’s about to ask him to quiet down when a young boy steps into the entrance of the play area. He stares at the two of them openly, his face blank and unreadable. Minghao’s worried he’ll call for his mother at the sight of two non-children lounging around, so he speaks up.

“Hi,” he greets with a wave. The boy gives a small one back.

“Are you playing?” the boy asks.

“No. I’m doing things for school.” The boy hums before taking a step inside and sitting down near Mingyu’s feet.

“Oh. Is he sad?” Mingyu lifts his head up at this and sighs quietly, nodding. “Are you best friends?”

“No,” comes out in unison and Minghao steals another look at his flushed face, which is suddenly frowning. His cheek is smushed into the belly of the plush elephant.

“My best friend left me here to go see his parents.” It sounds so ridiculous to his adult ears but Minghao realizes to a little kid, it might seem like a legitimate complaint.

“I get sad when my friends and I have to go home with our parents too,” the boy empathizes and Minghao has to laugh behind his hand. Mingyu pouts at him but he nods at the boy, appearing comforted that someone agrees with him.

The hands of the boy, whose name they learn is Heechan, drift to the box of discarded Legos and sift through the pieces. He stops before taking any blocks out though, looking at Minghao almost expectantly. He can’t help but smile and nod permission because who is he to tell this kid he can’t play in a _children’s play section_? Not to mention he is sweet enough and in a way, he’s helping take care of Mingyu.

He’s so well-mannered and quiet, even when Mingyu manages to sit up and join him in his playing. Minghao is still unfocused, stealing glances at the two of them between absent-mindedly typing out words. But he isn’t annoyed or frustrated or thinking of other places he can go to work in peace. Despite the circumstances, there is a strange sense of tranquility there. Maybe it’s a library thing.

The set-up of their scenario is lost on him until Heechan’s mother calls out for him, thankfully never making an appearance herself. The boy responsibly cleans up with Mingyu before waving goodbye to both of them and telling Mingyu he hopes he sees his best friend again soon. He takes off in a run and Mingyu fiddles with a block between his fingers.

Minghao observes the other for a moment; while he’s definitely not dried out completely, he seems to have sobered up some, which is good. There’s less swaying and clunky movements with his long limbs.

“So, um, what are you studying?” he gets asked, looking up from his screen to see Mingyu’s body turned towards him, legs folding together.

“Art History. I’m assuming you’re a student too?”

“Engineering.” Minghao snorts. “What?”

“Of course you’re an Engineering student. They’re always the ones who go too hard on the weekends.”

“Hey, I don’t do this often,” Mingyu puffs out, his bottom lip jutting out a little. Minghao hates how endearing he finds it. “It was a special occasion.”

“A special occasion that couldn’t wait until exams and everything else were over?” Mingyu shakes his head so vigorously, it’s comedic enough to make Minghao smile. “Okay, fine. If you were hungover, I would understand more. But you’re just drunk now, meaning your tolerance is either otherworldly or you started drinking extremely late.” Minghao realizes he shouldn’t be interrogating a total stranger like this; it’s none of his business and it’s a little rude, but there’s no malice in his words. It’s curiosity and amusement. And Mingyu doesn’t seem genuinely offended either, despite his huffing and pouting.

“I was up late finishing my paper and went out after. So at least I was diligent about my work unlike _someone else_.” Mingyu enunciates his reply by leaning forward and giving a few sloppy jabs of his finger to Minghao’s shoulder.

“I was working diligently until I got stuck having to watch over a ginormous drunk _baby_ ,” he counters back with his own pokes. Mingyu rubs at his shoulder and sticks out his tongue, causing the other to giggle.

“You giggle like a little kid.”

“You act like a little kid. Now be quiet and let me work.”

Silence does finally fall on them, Minghao getting back into the flow while Mingyu practically rolls around like a toddler. He seems to grow bored though, settling next to the other boy and peering over his shoulder at his laptop screen. It’s annoying at first, the hovering and closeness, but Mingyu is quiet aside from his breathing and occasional sniffles. Eventually, he lays back down, their knees bumping and resting together. Sleep overcomes him and Minghao doesn’t have the heart to shove his leg off even after his own starts to fall asleep.

When Seokmin suddenly appears again, he’s surprised. It wasn’t that he had forgotten about the other, but time had flown. It’s past two already.

“Oh, you’re back.”

“Hey, I’m sorry for taking so long,” Seokmin says with a sigh as he rounds the wall into the area. He sees Mingyu fast asleep and smiles brightly for a brief moment before it falls. “Mingyu, get off him!” Minghao only notices the coffee in his hands when he drops the cardboard carrier on the table in attempts to pull the other up.

“It’s okay, really. Everything was fine.” Minghao does take the new found freedom to stretch out his leg. Seokmin manages to get Mingyu to sit up and the latter clings onto him for a moment before shuffling away.

“I don’t need you anymore! I found a new best friend.” Seokmin’s eyebrows rise and he looks at Minghao for some kind of explanation but he’s just as confused. “His name is Heechan and he’s seven years old.” Minghao laughs out and hides his face in his palm.

“What? Hey, stop! Those aren’t for you!” Minghao peeks from behind his hand to see a coffee cup in Mingyu’s grasp; Seokmin struggles with him to try and pull it back and they are bickering once again, though fondness on both ends is palpable.

“He can have it, he probably needs it more than me.”

“But I finished my work last night, _remember_?”

“How could I forget,” Minghao replies dryly, though there’s a hint of a smile tugging at his lips. Mingyu makes a face at him before taking a sip of his drink, Seokmin having given up beside him. “I do need to finish this though.”

“Right, right. Hear that, Mingyu? We need to go.” With a little difficulty, Seokmin has them both standing and it’s the first time he realizes just how tall Mingyu actually is. “Thank you again, I owe you more than this. And you,” he flicks Mingyu’s ear, “owe him big time.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” he whines, swatting at his friend’s hand. Minghao silently agrees, for the most part.

“Mingyu’s a pretty good cook. I’m sure he’d love to make it up to both of us by cooking dinner one night. Wouldn’t you?” He expects a protest or a groan, some child-like response to go along with his other antics this afternoon, but all he does is tilt his head before nodding in agreement. “Good. We can make a plan later.”

The two of them make a drawn-out exit, complete with Mingyu’s attempts to steal another coffee and Seokmin’s inquiries about whether Heechan was a figment of Mingyu’s imagination or not. They both wave goodbye and Mingyu calls out to him ‘giggly baby’ before they’re gone.

It’s quiet again and Minghao gets back to work. It isn’t long before his phone vibrates beside him.

> **Lee Seokmin** : Mingyu keeps asking if u will come tonight ^_^

He stares at his laptop for a long moment before smiling to himself and replying.

> **Xu Minghao** : sure, count me in

Sundays were made to be spent in the library, anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> clearly seokmin should have been the drunk one, just so we could all remember his "i'm not baby >:(" moment.


End file.
